INEOS will acquire BASF’s 50% share in Styrolution, a joint venture between the companies. The purchase price to be paid by INEOS amounts to €1.1 billion. A call option in favor of INEOS to buy BASF’s share in Styrolution was already included in the shareholders’ agreement signed in 2011.

The transaction is subject to approval by the appropriate antitrust authorities. Styrolution will continue to operate as an independent company until the completion of the deal, which is expected in the fourth quarter of 2014.

“Styrolution has fulfilled its promise as a globally competitive business that competes effectively with large-scale producers from Asia and the Middle East. We are pleased to bring Styrolution fully into the INEOS family. After the purchase, Styrolution will be run separately as a stand-alone company within INEOS, and continue to operate as it does today,” said Jim Ratcliffe, chairman, INEOS Capital. The business will be a subsidiary of INEOS Industries Holdings Limited.

Styrolution was founded in October 2011 as a 50-50 joint venture between BASF and INEOS, and is the leading global styrenics supplier.